PA Man Plotted High School Mass Shooting, Bombing: Police

STATE COLLEGE, PA — Police have arrested a man they believe was plotting a mass attack for later this month at State College Area High School.

Braeden Phillips, 20, of Milroy, formerly of State College, was taken into custody Friday after a search warrant was executed at his residence. He has been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Phillips is being held without bail at the Centre County Correctional Facility.

The State College Police Department said in a release that they were assisted in the investigation by the Centre County District Attorney's Office, the Pennsylvania State Police, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the State College Area School District.

"State College Police would like to recognize that the success of this investigation would not have been possible without the initial report made by a concerned citizen," the release stated. "This illustrates the importance of 'see something, say something.'"

A criminal complaint alleged that Phillips planned a coordinated shooting at the high school and also planned to use incendiary devices in the attack, the Centre Daily Times reported.

The criminal complaint stated that Phillips, potentially accompanied by an unnamed juvenile, planned to carry out the attack on April 21 - a day after the 26th anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre. The event was to occur near the school's main staircase and incendiary devices were to be placed inside school restrooms.

"A 20-year-old man was apprehended before he could carry out a horrific act of violence, " State College Mayor Ezra Nanes said in a Facebook post on Monday. "We are shaken, but we are also deeply grateful—for the people who spoke up, and for the professionals who responded with speed, care, and resolve.

Classes were held at the high school on Monday with an enhanced police presence and metal detectors, according to the school district.